Generating plant



E. P. OSWALD.

GENERATING PLANT.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 24, 19l8.

1,415,385. Patented May 9, 1922.

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ZZRL P03 WALD.

m1, A aQM/MWK EARL I. OSWALD, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

GENERATING PLANT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October Q4, 1918. Serial No. 259,463.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EARL P. OSWALD, a citizen of the United States, residin at Detroit, county of Wayne, State of llfichi an, have invented a certain new and useful mprovement in Generating Plants, and declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the sa'me, such aswill enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to generating plants for. electricity and an object of my improvements is to automatically maintain the liquid of the storage battery in proper conditions.

I secure this object in the device illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an elevation of an apparatus embodying my invention with a diagrammatic representation of the circuits and some of the electrical apparatus.

Figure 2 is a detail sect'onal elevation showing the automatic make-and-brcak ap-.

paratus.

Figure 3 1s a detail plan view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 2, and

Figure 4 is a similar view to Fig. 3 the armature disk being removed.

a is the storage battery and b is an internal combustion engine shown directly coupled to a dynamo c which may serve both as a motor and generator as hereinafter described. (I is the ignition apparatus.

a is a pole of the battery a, which I shall assume is the positive pole and a is the negative pole. (1* is a contact adapted to be put into electrical communication with the pole a ashereinafter described.

0 is a conductor leading from the contact a? and communicating with the ignition apparatus (Z and having a signal light interposed between its ends. The conductor 6 is in electrical connection with the pole a. of the battery a. d is a switch adapted to disconnect the ignition apparatus d from the conductor 6 or put it. into connection therewith.

m is a conductor joining the pole a with the brush 0 of the dynamo c.

f is a conductor leading from the brush a of the dynamo c and extending in a coil f around a magnetic core 1:. and having a make-and-break apparatus f in circuit therewith, the conductor f f is in communication with'the pole a of the battery when the make-and-break apparatus f is closed. If is an armature by which the make-andbreak apparatus f may be operated. f is Patent-ed May 9, 1922..

a spring tending to draw the armature h away from the pole of the ma net core h.

j is a conductor branching rom the conductor f and extending to and joined with .7 the pole a of the battery 11. 9' is a switch in the conductor 7'.

.g is a conductor connected with the conductor m passing in a fine coil around the magnet core h and then connectin to the conductor 7 where it joins the brane 7'. 7

is k is the working circuit of the battery (1. n (Fig. 2) is a tube 0 n at its lower end and extending through t e cover of the battery a and toward the bottom of the battery cell. n are apertures formed at difi'erent levels through the wall of the tube at and below the liquid-in the battery cell. n is -a plug or cover fitting into the outer end-0f the tube n and substantially closing the outer end. r 1- are permanent magnets upon the cover a one having a north pole upon one side of the axis of the tube at and the other having a south pole on the other 'side of said axis. The pole a has contact strips of non-magnetic metal extending over the pole of the magnet r and the terminal a has a similar strip to of non-magnetic metal.

extending over the pole of the magnet 13*.

p is the bulb and p the stem of a hydrometer tube located axiallyin the tube n. The, tube extends and is adapted to reciprocate vertically through a central aperture in the cover a. q is a disk of magnetic material adapted to be attracted by the poles of the magnets 1- 1' and to engage the contact strips 8, w. of non-magneticwmetal over said poles to form an" electrical connection between the pole a and the terminal a. The bulb 10 contains the usual weight which is adjusted so that it shall rise and fall with the change in the specific gravity of the electrolyte or liquid in the cell.

a: (Fig. 4) terial pivoted at s closely adjacent to the pole of the magnet 1' and provided at the other end with an adjusting screw apparatus s by which this end may be adjusted toward or away from the poles of the magnet 1' By manipulating the screw 5 the gap between the pole r and the adjacent is a lever arm of magnetic mav the poles of the magnet 7- 1' may be taken and gives notice that the assists to hold the contact f c through the arm at and consequently the effective strength of the adjacent poles of said magnets to act upon the disk 9 may be regulated in this way.

The operation of the above described apparatus is as follows:

Suppose the switches (Z and 3' to be in position so that their respective circuits shall be open, If the specific gravity of the liquid of the cell (1 falls below a certain point the hydrometer tube p p sinks in the liquid and the disk q forms a bridge between the pole a and the contact a this com-" pletes the circuit through the signal light 6 battery requires recharging.

The operator then closes the switch d throwing the ignition apparatus into operative condition and then closes the switch the current then runs from thepole a of the battery through the conductor m through the dynamo c, the conductors f and returnsto the battery at the pole (L This sets the dynamo 0 in motion as a motor and starts the engine 6 into operation.

. A current is'now established through the conductor 9 and the small coil 9 energizing the core h which attracts thearmature k against theaction of the spring f and closes the circuit'at f As the engine increases in speed the voltage of the dynamo 0 becomes greater than that ofthe battery a and the current is sent in the reverse direction through the conductor m to the pole a through the battery through the conductor j, the conductors f and f and back to the dynamo, and this continues until the battery is again charged.

The current passing throu 'h the coil f l osedv- When the battery is charged the specific gravity of the liquid therein is increased and'its buoyant action of the liquid upon the hydrometer p p overcomes the attraction of the magnets r r for the disk q and raises said disk breaking the circuit ewhich will throw the ignition apparatus of the engine out of circuit and the engine will stop.

As the rotation of the armature of the dynamo 0 decreases, the energizing current through the coils around the magnet core it will stop and the spring f will cause the breaking of the circuit at F.

The point at which the hydrometer shall lift the disk g against the attraction of the magnets r r is adjusted by adjusting the gap between the free end of the arm a; and the pole of the magnet T The connection between the armature q and contacts 8 and 'w is positive and certain, because of the attraction of the magnetic poles and when the connection is broken it is broken completely, inasmuch as the separating of the armature q from the poles lessen theattractions and permits the effect bysaid tube and adapted to make and break an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit and a magnet adapted to attract said armature and hold it yieldingly in position to complete said circuit, whereby the signal will be energized.

2. In an apparatus of the-kind described, a storage battery, a hydrometer tube in the liquid of said battery, an armature carried by said tube and adapted to make and break an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit and a magnet adapted to attract said armature and hold it yieldingly in position to complete said circuit, whereby the signal will be energized, and means for adjusting the strength of said magnet.

3. In an apparatus of the kind described, a storage battery, a hydrometer tube in the liquid of said battery, an armature carried by said tube and adapted to make-andbreak an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit, and a magnet adapted to attract said armature and hold it yieldingly in position to complete said circuit, whereby the signal will be energized and means for adjusting the magnetic flux through said armature.

4:. In an apparatus of the character described, a storage battery, a generator for charging said battery, an internal combustlon engine having an ignition system operatively connected with said generator, a signal, an electrical circuit adapted when closed I to energize said signal and when opened to deenergize said ignition system, and means automatically actuated by a change in the specific gravity of the electrolyte in said battery to open or close said circuit.

position to complete scribed, a storage battery, a generator for charging said battery, an internal combustion engine operatively connected with said generator, a signal, an electrical circuit adapted when closed to energize said signal and when opened to deenergize said ignition system, a hydrometer tube in the liquid of said battery, an armature carried by said tube and adapted to make or break said circuit, a magnet adapted to attract said armacircuit, and means for adjusting the magnetic flux through said armature.

In testimony whereof, I sign this specification.

EAB-L P. OSWALI). 

